MDM Recordings Celebrates 10 Years of Canadian Country Music Moments

MDM Recordings, which has been honoured two times as Record Company of the Year (2015/2016), at the Canadian Country Music Association Awards (CCMA Awards), and twice as the No. 1 Independent Record Company in Canada (2015/2016), is currently celebrating its 10th anniversary – marking the occasion with new releases from 2017 JUNO Award winner and 3-time CCMA Award winner for Female Artist of the Year, Jess Moskaluke, CCMA Award winners Bobby Wills, and The Lovelocks and CCMA Award nominee David James in addition to a brand new collaboration from Charlie Major and the unveiling of musical collective Black Mountain Whiskey Rebellion.

Founded in 2008 by Mike Denney, who was first named Record Company Person of the Year at the CCMAs in 2014 and then took home the honours again in 2015 and 2017, MDM has close to 41 million LTD streams of their Canadian catalogue releases by artists like Bobby Wills, Chad Brownlee, Charlie Major, David James, Jess Moskaluke, Leaving Thomas, The Lovelocks, Tim Chaisson and more.

MDM currently boasts fourty Top 30 hits, sixteen Top 10 songs and close to a million spins at Country radio in Canada.

“Over the course of the past decade the MDM Recordings music landscape has been through many shifts and turns in an industry under siege,” says Mike Denney, President. “We’ve seen artists and labels come and go, record stores open and close, new trends flourish and we’ve had the honour to watch artists develop and thrive beside us from day one. Deep inside we have always known that we were/are onto something good.”

Through the years, MDM has consistently learned to balance ambition and realistic expectations, casting aside defeatism and allowing the art to speak for itself. The company’s artist-friendly and collaborative approach involving management and recording has successfully launched the careers of many. The company has evolved from one man’s passionate vision, to an award winning, global operation with presence throughout North America and Australia.

In 2008, MDM Recordings first release was “Ready 2 Go” by Bryce Pallister. In early 2009, the label signed Jo Hikk, who delivered MDM’s first Top 10 at Country Radio with “My Kinda Radio” as well as the label’s first CCMA Awards nomination for Group or Duo of the Year. 2009 also marked the year that MDM signed Chad Brownlee, whose four albums for the label (“Chad Brownlee”, “Love Me or Leave Me”, “The Fighters”, “Hearts On Fire”), and 19 singles established the CCMA Award winner as a major country star in Canada.

By late 2009, MDM Recordings had built a devout team of industry professionals affectionately referred to as the “road family” and established itself as a boutique independent label, determined to turn the Canadian Country music world upside down and put the music back in the music business.

Following a period of impressive growth including signings and highly praised releases from Bobby Wills, Clayton Bellamy, Hayley, Julian Austin, Melanie Doane, The Mandevilles, and more, the label discovered (via YouTube) a young female singer from Langenburg, Saskatchewan named Jess Moskaluke.

The current success of Jess Moskaluke is a story that stands alone. Acclaimed in 2017 as the first Canadian female country artist to have a song in the Top 5 since 2008, she is the first and only (to date) female Canadian country artist since (her childhood idol) Shania Twain to achieve a PLATINUM single certification for the hit “Cheap Wine and Cigarettes”. Add to that, three Top 10 singles, three GOLD awards, multiple SCMA Awards, a 2017 SOCAN Award, the title of “Female Artist of the Year” at the CCMA Awards for three consecutive years, and the 2017 JUNO Award for “Country Album of the Year” – it just proves that a tiny dream can become one of the best full-time jobs 10 years later!

“The 10th anniversary of MDM Recordings is a momentous event that demonstrates our commitment and dedication to bringing better ideas, better music, and best-in-class artists to Country music fans and the industry,” shares Mike Denney. “It’s no secret that our industry is experiencing tumultuous times. Yet, MDM and the Country music genre have weathered these changes and continue to grow and exceed despite uncertainty in the market. We couldn’t have done it without the bold decision-making and support of our artists, partners and fans, and we look forward to the next 10 years.”